Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif instructed the Finance Division on Thursday to release Rs250 million for a ‘Houbara Bustard and Migratory Birds Endowment Fund’.
In October, the prime minister had approved the fund, which aims at boosting the habitats of migratory birds, particularly the endangered Houbara bustard. The fund will be used to increase the population of migratory birds in the country.
The Prime Minister’s Focal Person on Climate Change will coordinate with the provinces to operationalise the fund.
Last week, the federal government had issued special permits to three princes from Saudi Arabia to hunt the Houbara Bustard, an internationally protected bird, in Balochistan and Punjab during the hunting season.
The Houbara Bustard is not only protected under various international conventions and agreements signed by Pakistan, its hunting is also banned under local wildlife protection laws.
